A sustainable budget for Guyana will inevitably be tied to the NRF and domestic taxes barring renegotiation

There are many unanswered nuanced questions surrounding the Petroleum Sharing Agreement, PSA2016, and Guy-ana’s budgetary matters omitted in the article SN 2025-01-13, regarding the long-term welfare of the nation. The contract templates were carried into the new 2016 contract as if the two major parties were in agreement on the new 2016 contract. The 1999…

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The world has not stopped using sugar even as GuySuCo is yet to map out its own success strategy

Dear Editor, Mechanization is not a strategy as mentioned in article, SN 2025-01-08. GuySuCo can pursue one of three generic strategies: low cost per ton of sugar, focusing on a market segment, or creating differentiated products to sell. The corporation should be consistent with Guyana’s avowed agricultural policy of diversification and pursue a differentiated product…

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The PSA2016 agreement should be renegotiated to uphold Guyana’s Constitutional Laws

The letter in SN 25-01-06 by Sanjeev Datadin may not be in line with universally accepted legal principles. It appears that an ordinary business contract can over-ride Guyana’s Constitutional Laws governing taxation. Further, can one party create a law to break another law? These are principles in the Law of Contract, in Cheshire and Fyfoot,…

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I join with others in calling for the revising of the 2016 PSA

I join with others in calling for revising of the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement, PSA 2016. Withdrawal rules are less important than invoking the special clause under Article 24, ‘Force Majeure’, dealing with the additional actual and potential activities that are placing Guyanese to bear indirect costs arising from activities of adding an oil industry…

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ExxonMobil’s noncompliance with Guyana’s Sovereign Tax laws should be of concern to all especially the US Internal Revenue Service

The public deserves information on the outcomes of the 2016 Petroleum Sharing Agreement, PSA2016. Article 15.1 purports that Guyana’s tax laws are complied with by the contractor and its affiliated companies. This is in form only. Substance of actual corporation profits tax, under Guyana’s Sovereign Tax laws, are not paid into Guyana’s Consolidated Fund. This…

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Some variances of Suriname’s business model within its petroleum contract compared to Guyana’s 2016 PSA

I thank Dr. Vishnu Bisram for pointing out an economic approach towards distributive justice in managing oil wealth in Suriname: ‘“Royalties for Everyone”, on the decision by the government of Suriname to grant a savings note (royalty shareholding certificate) of US$750 to each of its citizens, payable after 2028 with 7% interest and a contrast…

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Rearrange the 75 percent expense recoveries so that tax revenues are actually being paid to Guyana

There is no provision for any effective Royalty in the 2016 Production Sharing Agreement, PSA2016. Guyana receives 2 percent as ownership rights called Royalty (usus rights). There are two other classes of rights in the design of business contracts; transformation rights and fruits of production rights. Zero value is assigned for transformation rights (abusus rights), such…

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The cash flows in the PSA2016 could be rearranged so as to not cause Guyana to spend out its savings in its National Resource Fund

I wish to respond to the idea that the oil companies are granting Guyana a fair deal with their 50/50 billboard in which Guyana is getting one-half of the profits from sale of crude oil. Further, the ideas thrown about is half a loaf is better than nothing. This is very misleading in running a…

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The export-led growth model that does not generate tax revenues is unsustainable

Guyana’s oil export led growth model leaves important gaps in Government financing that could pose sustainability threats for whichever Government is in office. One has to go back to fundamentals and ask if the engine of growth makes any contribution to the Central Government’s current or capital budget, beyond its 2 percent Royalty that Guyana…

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